CV01. Protection: Smelly Sanitizers, CV03. Information: Epidemiological Models, Plain Language, CV05. Economics: What People Buy, CV10. Spirituality, Philosophy: Pandemic Screens, CV15. Death: False Comfort of Lower Death Rates, Lysenkoism, CV21. Syndemic, Concurrent Disasters: Australia, Fire, Pandemic, Violence, CV28. Logistics: China, Command Economy Vaccine, CV29. Responsibility, Decision Making: Texas Acceleration, CV30. Methodology: Pathogenic and Social Contagions
PDN Introduction.
CV01. Protection: Why Do Hand Sanitizers Suddenly Smell So Awful. I was relieved to finally have some sanitizer on hand again as a precaution. That relief was short lived. Opening the bottle revealed what could only be described as the funky marriage of rotting corncobs paired with pungent notes of barnyard odors, a repulsive nose wrinkling scent that lingered and wafted far and wide with every use.
CV03. Information: Epidemiological Models: 10 Things Journalists Covering Coronavirus Research Should Know. 1) Make it clear in your coverage that models are only as good as the data used to build them, and that researchers currently lack high-quality data about this pandemic. 2) Explain to your audience that researchers also make assumptions when creating models. Keep in mind that researchers use a variety of models to study infectious diseases. 3) They are designed to answer different questions. 4) When reporting on a model that makes a numerical prediction, emphasize that the prediction is a ballpark estimate represented by a range of possible numbers. 5) Tell your audience what the study adds to what we know about that particular topic and which big questions remain. 6) Ask these seven questions when interviewing researchers about epidemiological models: What type of model (and statistics) was used and what are its strengths and weaknesses. What assumptions went into creating the model. What was this model designed to do. Where did the data used for the model come from and how did using this specific data affect results. What factors or data were intentionally left out of this study and why. Does this study focus on a best case or worst case scenario. What caveats must be included in an explanation of this study’s findings. 7) Give additional scrutiny to models created by researchers who have not demonstrated expertise in model building. 8) Be leery of epidemiology models from scientists (and pseudo scientists) who aren’t experts in epidemiology. 9) Use Twitter to Find out what academics and others are saying about new research (and if they have the background) – and develop a relation with researchers who can knowledgeably review an article and have the reputation of objectivity, reliability and self correction. 10) Learn more about epidemiological models. It will help you ask stronger questions and better explain coronavirus research in plain language*.
-*A. Be aware plain language can lead the reader astray. Better yet explain technical meaning of a technical term, or pseudo technical term in plain language. 11) Let the researcher, who is the basis of an article review it. In an impromptu survey I did I contacted 17 researchers about an article on their research. Only 1 had read the article (they were also the only one that said the article was completely correct, but they also evidenced motivated reasoning to reach a particular conclusions), 14 said the article emphasized the wrong or minor point, 1 said the article was misleading, and 1 said the article was dangerously misleading. The Fight for Covid-19 Data, and What the Press Can Do with It. ADDED Where the Latest Covid-19 Models Think We're Headed – and Why They Disagree.
CV05. Economics: Economic Earthquake: Consumer Spending in the Wake of the Coronavirus Pandemic. Though of interest in its own right, more telling is government and business spending. Both tend to buy more, hoard, potentially waste money of what is not actually needed, tend not to maintain needed stocks (another waste), and can interfere with supply chains to ultimate users.
CV10. Spirituality, Philosophy: Pandemic Time. We can ponder the ‘screenness of screens' and the mediated nature of the present moment. A mediated experience is one that has options. That is what makes a mediated experience unreal, what makes screens different to windows. CV03 CV15 CV16 CV17 CV19 CV30.
CV15. Death: Fauci: False Narrative to Take Comfort in Lower Coronavirus Death Rate =2=. Trump Breaks with Fauci: US in 'Good Place' in Fight Against Virus. Lysenkoism the suppression of, or refusal to acknowledge, science for ideological reasons.
-A. ADDED [Cartoon]. Here's Exactly How Detached from Reality Donald Trump Is on the Coronavirus =2=. Fauci Says States Need to Address Problems with Covid-19 Response: If You Don't Admit It, You Can't Correct It.
CV21. Syndemic, Concurrent Disasters: The Fire, the Virus, the Violence: Australia and the Lessons of Natural Disasters.
CV28. Logistics: At War Time Speed, China Leads Covid-19 Vaccine Race. Its success in driving down COVID-19 infections makes it harder to conduct large scale vaccine trials, and so far only a few other countries have agreed to work with it. After past vaccine scandals, Beijing will also have to convince the world it has met all safety and quality requirements. But China’s use of command economy CV05 type tools is so far yielding results. A state Controlled entity, for example, completed two vaccine plants at what it called the “war time speed” of a couple of months, while state owned enterprises and the military have allowed experimental shots to be used on staff.
CV29. Responsibility, Decision Making: Texas Reports More Covid-19 Cases in Single Day than Any EU Country as Cases Rise by 10,000. We Opened Too Quickly: Texas Becomes a Model for Inadequate Covid-19 Response. The Texas Grim Reaper’s Fight Against Masks and Health Care. A Texas Border County Had the Coronavirus under Control. Then the Governor Stepped In, Texas Governor Is Putting Lives at Risk, Local Officials Say. Texas Becomes the First State to Reimpose a Lockdown as Covid-19 Cases Surge. If People Die, People Die: Texas COVID Hot Spots Keep Getting Worse. Texas Hospital Says 100% of ICU Beds Full – Then Removes its Report. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick Says Dr. Anthony Fauci Doesn’t Know What He’s Talking About, Days after Lt. Gov. Said He Was Done Listening to Dr. Fauci, Texas Mandates Mask Wearing Statewide. Face Masks Mandatory in Most of Texas, Starting Friday. Texas City to Issue Criminal Citations If Covid-19 Patients Leave Homes. Group of Texas Sheriffs Won't Enforce Governor's 'Draconian' Coronavirus Mask Rule. 200624-CV29. The Mask Decision That Will Haunt Trump's Reelection Bid and he is showing few signs he'll budge on an issue.
CV30. Methodology: Pathogenic and social contagions. Coronavirus and Drinking Games: Author of New Book Sees Commonalities. The spread of the coronavirus has surprising similarities to the spread of fake news, gun violence and even social media fads. What they all have in common is that mathematics plays a role in predicting how things "go viral," whether it's a germ, a rumor or an internet trend. #Book, The Rules of Contagion [Cover].
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